Sonar image of the seabed from the boat electronics

Structure fishing

Wreck fishing off Brighton

Wrecks are fish magnets. Out in the Channel off the Sussex coast they hold cod, pollack, black bream and conger, and a skipper who knows where they sit makes all the difference.

Book a place online: £110 per person Book the whole boat: £800 07896 471691

In short

Our 10-hour wreck trip is fished at anchor from Brighton Marina for large conger and large bream. It costs £110 per person or £800 whole boat, 8 anglers max.

Length10 hours, at anchor
Target fishLarge conger, large bream
Group sizeUp to 8 anglers
Price£110 pp / £800 boat

Why wrecks

Why fish over wrecks?

A wreck is a reef made of steel and timber. It gives small fish somewhere to hide and feed, and the bigger fish follow. Cod and pollack hang above and around the structure, black bream swarm over it in summer, and conger eels live inside it.

The Sussex coast is covered in wrecks of every age, and finding them again on the day is where modern sonar and the skipper's 30 years of local knowledge pay off. The picture below was taken from our own electronics.

Angler with a long conger eel — A conger eel landed over a wreck.

The method

How we fish a wreck

The method depends on the season and the tide. In winter the favoured approach is to sit at anchor over rough ground with running ledger rigs, using a short snood of 6 to 10 inches on bigger tides and up to 4 feet on smaller ones. For cod we use pennel rigs with big worm baits.

In summer, flappers are used to lure the bream off the wreck. Fresh mackerel bait, caught on the way out, is the key for most species: it is the one thing that works almost anywhere.

Anchored over the wreck or rough ground
Flappers for bream in summer
Fresh mackerel for bait where the trip allows

Angler holding a black bream — Black bream are a summer wreck favourite.

Wreck and structure catches

Catches from the wrecks

Large conger and large bream on the 10-hour wreck trip at anchor.

Sea fish guide

Fish you can catch off Sussex

The wrecks hold conger, bream, cod and pollack, and our catches over them have included bull huss and spurdog.

= caught off the Sussex coast, according to the sources in our sea fish reference guide.

Prices 2027: wreck fishing

The 10-hour wreck trip at anchor, per person or whole boat.

Per person Prices 2027

Wreck fishing at anchor: large conger and bream10 hours, 8 anglers max	£110Book online
Sea fishing trip at anchor, multiple species8 hours, 10 anglers max	£75Book online

Rod hire £10 per person (1 rod, 1 set of end tackle and a lead weight). Extra end tackle £7 per set with a weight. Bait: price on application. Shark trip: fishing tackle included.

Whole boat Prices 2027

Wreck fishing at anchor: large conger and bream10 hours, 8 anglers max	£800Book online
Sea fishing trip at anchor, multiple species8 hours, 10 anglers max	£650Book online

The whole-boat price is the same however many of you there are, up to the maximum for that trip.

All trips need a £20 per person (£50 whole boat) non-refundable booking fee, and the balance can be paid on the day. See the terms and conditions for weather and cancellation rules.

Good to know

Frequently asked questions

What fish do you catch over wrecks?

Cod, pollack, black bream and conger are the classic wreck fish, with bass, gurnard, ballan wrasse, pout, whiting and the occasional tope turning up as well. On one trip in August the crew landed cod, congers, bream, bass, gurnard, plaice, wrasse, pout and tope in a single day (see the fishing report).

How deep are the wrecks you fish?

It varies from shallower inshore wrecks a few miles out to deeper offshore wrecks. A report from May mentions fishing wrecks in around 190 feet of water. We choose the mark to suit the weather, the tide and the fish.

Do you drift or anchor over a wreck?

The 10-hour wreck trip is fished at anchor, usually with running ledger rigs over the wreck or rough ground.

What tackle do I need?

None. Rods, reels and rigs are provided. Rod hire is £10 per person (1 rod, 1 set of end tackle and a lead weight); extra end tackle is £7 per set with a weight; bait is price on application. Extra tackle and leads can also be bought on board.

Will I lose rigs on a wreck?

Sometimes, yes. Wrecks are rough ground and a snagged rig is part of fishing them. Tackle and leads are available on the boat so you can carry on.

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